These garden squares are made for naming: new onyms in Polish urban space

Abstract

The recent rise in the number of named garden squares (Polish skwery) in Poland is unprecedented and certain tendencies in their naming can be ascertained. Most importantly, these urbanonyms reference people markedly more than was the case with streets. Some names are meant to educate rather than identify. Also, the time span between the event and its commemoration tends to be shorter than in the case of street names. Naming garden squares offers more formal freedom (since these names do not appear in addresses). Finally, it seems that the namesake needs an object more than the referent needs a name